Apparatus for chilling vessels



Oct. 29, 1968 w. v. TAYLOR 3,407,624

APPARATUS FOR CHILLING VESSELS Filed Sept. 9, 1965 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 23 B I r ,7 3 3 J INVENToR WILFR 50 V. Y R Ff Z 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 W. V. TAYLOR APPARATUS FOR CHILLING VESSELS Oct. 29, 1968 Filed Sept. 9, 1965 uvvsu roe: w/L AED V 7274 a; MSQ LMQLM-i W {Tram/vs) V Oct. 29, 1968 w. v. TAYLOR v APPARATUS FOR CHILLING VESSELS Filed Sept. 9. 1965 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 :x k Em lv 8 Mam aw M MS C, WW, w 7 2 Q United States Patent Ofice 3,407,624 Patented] Oct. 29, 1968 7 3,407,624 APPARATUS FOR CHILLING VESSELS Wilfred V. Taylor, 3 Warrowa Ave., Pymble, New South Wales, Australia Filed Sept. 9, 1965, Ser. No. 486,098 Claims priority, application Australia, Sept. 10, 1964, 49,183/ 64 6 Claims. (Cl. 62-293) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention is concerned with a portable device for chilling drinking vessels such as glasses and includes a portable pressurized liquid refrigerant container having a vertically displaceable spray nozzle and a platform mounted relative to the container and nozzle, The plat form serves as a support for the vessel to be chilled and when depressed actuates a valve which provides refrig erant to the nozzle thereby chilling the glass.

This invention relates to the chilling of glass tumblers, wine glasses or other drinking vessels immediately prior to the use of those vessels. Such chilling may be effected so as to prevent the vessel Warming a chilled drink, to provide an attractively dewed or frosted vessel, or for both those reasons.

Various types of apparatus have been devised for chilling vessels as aforesaid. One such apparatus has consisted of a plurality of metal heat absorbers in the form of mounds corresponding to the inner shape of a vessel to be chilled, so that a vessel when inverted and placed over a suitable one of said heat absorbers is substantially chilled thereby. The absorbers are themselves chilled by a refrigerant circulating and expanding in pipes within the absorbers or otherwise in thermally conductive relationship therewith.

Known apparatus of the kind described above has not been satisfactory. Firstly, because of the need for the heat absorbers to be shaped to correspond with the drinking vessel to be chilled (so requiring the replacement of the heat absorbers Whenever a change in shape of the drinking vessel occurred) and secondly, because of the time taken to chill the vessel due to inefficient heat transfer from the vessel to the heat absorber.

The object of the present invention is to provide apparatus for chilling drinking vessels which overcomes the above mentioned disadvantages.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus and method for chilling or frosting glasses by contacting said glasses with a liquid refrigerant.

The above and other objects will be apparent from the description which follows.

The invention achieves these objects by the provision of apparatus for chilling drinking vessels which sprays a non-toxic liquid-refrigerant onto the surface of the vessel. The refrigerant on the vessels surface is then exposed to the atmosphere and almost immediately boils away and chills the vessel.

The invention also consists of a method of chilling drinking vessels comprising the steps of spraying a nontoxic, tasteless and odorless liquid refrigerant onto the surface of the vessel and then exposing the vessel to room conditions to cause rapid evaporation of said refrigerant.

The invention also extends to apparatus for performing the above described method comprising a spray head, a reservoir adapted to hold a charge of liquid refrigerant under pressure, a duct extending from the reservoir to the spray head for the supply of refrigerant thereto and valve devices to control the flow of refrigerant along said duct to the spray head. According to preferred embodiments of the apparatus of the invention, the spray head protrudes from a depressible platform and the valve devices operate in response to movement of the platform.

Such preferred embodiments of the invention may be used by inverting the vessel to be chilled upon the platform so that it encloses the spray head and then pushing downwardly on the base of the vessel to depress the platform.

By way of example, two embodiments of apparatus according to the invention are described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of one embodiment of apparatus according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 but drawn to a larger scale;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an upper portion of the apparatus of FIG. 2 taken on line 3-3 of that figure;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of a portion of another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on line 66 of FIG. 5, but drawn to a larger scale;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken on line 7-7 of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 6.

The embodiment of the invention illustrated by FIGS. 1 to 4 is one wherein the refrigerant reservoir is a conventional so-called aerosol container which may be purchased, filled with refrigerant and then discarded when empty.

The apparatus includes a base structure 9 comprising an outer, metal, or plastic bell-shaped skirt 10 and a top plate 11 with an integral skirt 12 extending downwardly therefrom.

The base structure 9 supports a depressible platform 13 by means of three holding screws 14 extending slideably through corresponding glands 15 in the top plate 11. The platform 13 is urged upwardly by springs 16 sleeved upon the respective screws 14 and therefore may be depressed by downward loads sufiicient to overcome the effect of those springs.

The skirt 12 is adapted frictionally to grip a standard aerosol container 17 so that the top cap 18 of the container protrudes through a centrally placed hole in the top plate 11. The container 17 has an upwardly directed outlet spout or nozzle 19 constituting a duct through which pressurized refrigerant within the container 17 may flow when the spout 19 is depressed so as to open a dispensing valve within the container 17. The container 17, its outlet spout 19 and the dispensing valve operable thereby is perfectly conventional and contains a charge of a non-toxic, odorless refrigerant such as for example dichlorodifluoromethane.

The platform 13 has a spray head 20 integral with it. The spray head 20 is hollow and provides a plurality of spray orifices 21 through which jets of refrigerant, fed to the interior of the spray head 20 through the container outlet nozzle 19, may emerge.

The upper surface of the platform 13 preferably has a plurality of ribs 22 projecting from it such that a drinking vessel 23 may be inverted on the platform 13 so as to cover the spray head 20 but without forming a substantially closed space within the vessel 23. Downward pressure on the vessel 23 may then be applied to depress the platform 13 which in turndepresses the container nozzle 19 so releasing refrigerant which is sprayed onto the inner surface of the vessel 23.

The embodiment of the invention illustrated by FIGS. 5-8 differs from that of FIGS. 1-4 primarily in that the valve devices are not within an expendable aerosol container 'but rather are of a more permanent nature and are positioned outside the refrigerant reservoir. This enables the reservoir to be connected to the remainder of the apparatus by a flexible or other pipe so that if desired one large reservoir may be pipe connected to a plurality of spray heads, each of which may be operable independently of the others.

The embodiment of the invention now being described includes a depressible platform 24 complete with a spray head 25 and ribs 26 the same as the corresponding components of the first described embodiment of the invention. The depressible platform 24 is resiliently supported upon a cylindrical base structure 27 adapted to rest upon a table or bar top 28.

Valve devices 29 are housed within the base structure 27 and comprise a valve body 30 extending through a clearance hole in the base structure 27 and secured to the base structure 27 by a clamping nut 31 and a co-acting flange 32 on the valve body.

The valve body 30 is hollow and at its lower end extends below the base structure 27 as an externally threaded tube 33 adapted to receive a conventional pipe connector and thereby enabling the interior of the valve body 30 to be put into communication with an external refrigerant reservoir.

The upper end of the valve body 30 has an internally threaded cap 34 applied to it which serves to secure a generally tubular valve insert 35 and at the same time retains a resilient valve seat 36 in position in an annular recess in the top of the insert 35.

A tubular hollow valve stem 37 is urged upwardly by a leading spring 38 so that a peripheral shoulder on the stem 37 seats against the resilient seat 36 to seal off refrigerant in the space 39. However, when the platform 24 is depressed it shifts the valve stem 37 downwardly so that a small valve orifice 40 extending through the wall of the stem 37 is shifted below the seat 36 so enabling refrigerant to flow through the stem 37 into the spray head 25 and thence onto the inner surface of a drinking vessel.

It will be noted that the presence of ribs 22 in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-4 and ribs 26 in the embodiment of FIGS. 5-8 has the salutary effect of permitting the volatile refrigerant gas, which forms when the liquid refrigerant comes in contact with the vessel being chilled, to readily escape and not to be trapped within the chamber formed by the vessel and the platform 13 (or 24) so as to give rise to an objectionable gaseous pressure.

It will be appreciated that apparatus according to the invention may take many forms. For example manually operable valve devices of any conventional kind may be provided. Also rotary or other spray heads may be provided. In still other examples of the invention the refrigerant is sprayed upon the outer surface of the vessel to be chilled instead of, or as well as, the inner surface. In other examples of the invention, means may be provided to wet the drinking vessel prior to it being sprayed with the refrigerant.

Various other modifications will be apparent to those familiar with the art and are also contemplated provided they are within the spirit and scope of the present invention as represented by the appended claims when construed in the light of the above disclosure.

I claim:

1. A portable apparatus for chilling a drinking vessel comprising a spray head adapted to discharge liquid refrigerant onto the surface of the vessel to be chilled, a reservoir containing a charge of liquid refrigerant under pressure, a duct extending from the reservoir to the spray head for the supply of refrigerant thereto, valve means within said reservoir controlling the flow of refrigerant along said duct to the spray head, a depressible platform supporting said spray head and wherein said valve means operates in response to depression of said platform, and a body member beneath said platform which engages the reservoir and maintains said reservoir in a fixed position relative to the spray head and the platform.

2. The apparatusof claim lwherein the upper surface of said platform is ribbed so that a drinking vessel inverted on the platform over said spray head does not define a sealed space but permits the ready inflow and outflow of the refrigerant.

3. Apparatus for chilling drinking vessels comprising in combination; a spray head adapted to discharge liquid refrigerant onto the surface of a vessel to be chilled, a reservoir containing a charge of liquid dichlorodifluoromethane refrigerant under pressure, a duct extending from the reservoir to the spray head for conveying refrigerant to the spray head, valve means controling the flow of refrigerant through the duct to the spray head, a depressible plat-form supporting said spray head and dimensioned to support an inverted vessel with the spray head received in the vessel, and means responsive to the depression of said platform for operating said valve means to permit flow of the refrigerant to the spray head, venting means in the platform permitting free escape of the liquid refrigerant from the confines of a drinking vessel inverted on the platform for chilling to permIt the refrigerant to expand and thereby chill the vessel, and a' body'member beneath the platform and frictionally engaging the periphery of the reservoir to maintain the reservoir in fixed position below the platform.

4. Apparatus for chilling drinking vessels comprising in combination; a spray head adapted to discharge liquid refrigerant onto the surface of a vessel to be chiled, a reservoir containing a charge of liquid dichlorodifluoromethane refrigerant under pressure, a duct extending from the reservoir to the spray head for conveying refrigerant to the spray head, valve means controlling the flow of refrigerant through the duct to the spray head, a depressible platform supporting said spray head and dimensioned to support an inverted vessel with the spray head received in the vessel, means responsive to depression of said platform for operating said valve means to permit flow of the refrigerant to the spray head, venting means in the platform permitting free escape of the liquid refrigerant from the confines of a drinking vessel inverted on the platform for chilling to permit the refrigerant to expand and thereby chill the vessel, said venting means being formed by a plurality of upstanding ribs including radially extending portions on the platform for engaging the rim of the inverted drinking vessel to space the rim from the platform to allow free escape of liquid refrigerant from the confines of the vessel outwardly of the rim.

5. A portable apparatus for chilling a drinking vessel comprising a spray head adapted to discharge liquid refrigerant onto the surface of the vessel to be chilled, a reservoir containing a charge of liquid refrigerant under pressure, a duct extending from the reservoir to the spray head for the supply of refrigerant thereto, valve means within said reservoir controlling the flow of refrigerant along said duct means to the spray head, said valve means being operated by movement of said duct means, an annular depressible platform coaxial with said duct means and extending over said reservoir, and means causing the duct to be depressed when the platform is depressed wherein said valve means operates in response to depression of said platform, and a body member beneath said platform which engages the reservoir and maintains said reservoir in a fixed position. v

6. A portable apparatus for chi'ling a drinking vessel comprising a spray head adapted to discharge liquid refrigerant onto the surface of the vessel to be chilled, a reservoir containing a charge of liquid refrigerant under pressure, a duct extending from the reservoir to the spray head for the supply of refrigerant thereto, valve means within said reservoir controlling the flow of refrigerant along said duct means to the spray head, said valve means being operated by movement of said duct means, an annular depressible platform coaxial with said duct means and extending over said reservoir, and means causing the duct to be depressed when the platform is de- 5 pressed wherein said valve means operates in response to depression of said platform, and a body member beneath said platform and means between the reservoir and the body member which locates the body member coaxial with the reservoir.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6 3,000,195 9/1961 Federighi 62-64 X 3,257,821 6/1966 Warner 62--457 X FOREIGN PATENTS 174,392 1/ 1922 Great Britain.

ROBERT A. OLEARY, Primary Examiner.

W. E. WAYNER, Assistant Examiner. 

